Public health emergency of international concern

A public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) is a formal declaration by the World Health Organization (WHO) of in which an outbreak of a disease is a public health risk that can spread between many countries and need an international response.WHO Q&A (19 June 2019).  These countries have a legal duty to respond quickly to a PHEIC.

Between 2009 and 2022, there were seven PHEIC declarations: the 2009 H1N1 (or swine flu) pandemic, the 2014 polio declaration, the 2013–2016 outbreak of Ebola in Western Africa, the 2015–16 Zika virus epidemic, the 2018–20 Kivu Ebola epidemic, the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing 2022 monkeypox outbreak.WHO Statement (31 January 2020). 

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Category:Public health